The money QPR have spent in the past few years is amazing and yet it's still bye-bye! Mark Hughes is proving just as successful as all those other Man U old-boys (i.e not very) and even Harry the Tax Dodger couldn't work his dodgy magic this time! It's going to be hard to unload some of those mercenaries on high wages when they pitch-up in Le Championship next season. Two Welsh teams in the Prem next season. And could Ob's Bolton come up via the play-offs?

I LOVE relegation. Because at season's end even the lousy teams have to fight for something and the crap sides get dropped and the deserving teams come up. Too bad American sports don't have it, not that I even follow them anymore. Heresy, I know.

Reading really fell apart at the end. They lost what, seven in a row at one point down the stretch? Hard to believe they were the npower championship winners last year. Is this common for the winners of the second tier to bounce back down after just one season?

It looks like Wolverhampton will drop down to League One for next year!

>>>>>>>I LOVE relegation. Because at season's end even the lousy teams have to fight for something and the crap sides get dropped and the deserving teams come up>>>>>>>>

Well Jim, you may not know this, but the F.A.tes - see what I did there - have decreed that the final game of the season is....WIGAN vs ASTON VILLA....which could be a 20 million winner takes all shoot-out, at least if things stay the way they are right now!

I LOVE relegation. Because at season's end even the lousy teams have to fight for something and the crap sides get dropped and the deserving teams come up.

The first match I remember well from watching it on the telly as a nipper was the 1969 FA Cup final between Manchester City and Leicester City. Man City won, and by coincidence, Leicester were relegated from the old division one in the same season. My innocent self thought for a while that, although a bit harsh, the punishment for losing the FA Cup final was instant relegation!

This year, Man City are again in the FA Cup final, this time facing Wigan, who may well be relegated. History repeating itself?

And relegation is a great concept - unless it's your team facing the drop.

Gareth Bale and Tottenham supporters rejoice, as he's named PFA Player of the Year. Edging out Luis Suarez (tee hee) and Robin Van Persie.

Yes, congratulations to Gareth Bale...

What has bemused me even more however, is that in a room full of professional footballers, managers, journalists and FA bigwigs, Suarez is booed when his name is announced. And they have the audacity to criticise HIM for being a bad role model!! Disgraceful.

I LOVE relegation. Because at season's end even the lousy teams have to fight for something and the crap sides get dropped and the deserving teams come up.

The first match I remember well from watching it on the telly as a nipper was the 1969 FA Cup final between Manchester City and Leicester City. Man City won, and by coincidence, Leicester were relegated from the old division one in the same season. My innocent self thought for a while that, although a bit harsh, the punishment for losing the FA Cup final was instant relegation!

This year, Man City are again in the FA Cup final, this time facing Wigan, who may well be relegated. History repeating itself?

And relegation is a great concept - unless it's your team facing the drop.

TG

IIRC Birmingham were relegated after winning the Carling Cup vs Arsenal a couple years back. Not quite the same thing, but..

Wigan fought hard to avoid relegation last season after spending much of the time rock bottom. I doubt they'll escape relegation this time.

Believe me TG, I understand what you're saying, but in American Football (gridiron)--which I promise never to mention in this thread again --one has to suffer through vastly inferior teams for decades and on the biggest stage in the country. I guess the NFL is much more an elitist club than world football is. The Cincinnati Bengals were utter garbage for nearly twenty years and were a national embarrassment. The Detroit Lions...so awful. Crap teams like those needed relegating ("they needed killin") . I much prefer a team to have something to fight for every year or else it's down they go. I see that some teams with a once-proud history down in League One.

The winner of the league is boring, it's like the battle of the billionaires. The struggle to be in the top four is more interesting (Arsenal or Tottenham?), & best of all is the relegation, not so exciting this year, as two teams were a forgone conclusion.

IIRC Birmingham were relegated after winning the Carling Cup vs Arsenal a couple years back. Not quite the same thing, but..

Wigan fought hard to avoid relegation last season after spending much of the time rock bottom. I doubt they'll escape relegation this time.

Believe me TG, I understand what you're saying, but in American Football (gridiron)--which I promise never to mention in this thread again --one has to suffer through vastly inferior teams for decades and on the biggest stage in the country. I guess the NFL is much more an elitist club than world football is. The Cincinnati Bengals were utter garbage for nearly twenty years and were a national embarrassment. The Detroit Lions...so awful. Crap teams like those needed relegating ("they needed killin") . I much prefer a team to have something to fight for every year or else it's down they go. I see that some teams with a once-proud history down in League One.

Oh, don't get me wrong. Promotion and relegation is probably the single most important thing about Association Football. It gives hope to supporters of once proud clubs like Stockport County and Luton Town - David Arnold's home club! - that they might one day be back amongst the big boys (well, in the Championship, at any rate), and it serves as a warning to other clubs to run themselves with fiscal correctness lest they end up like Leeds.

Winning trophies is a good thing, but only one team can be league champions, only one team can win the FA Cup and/or the League Cup. These are the only three things that matter, everything else is a stepping stone towards them. However, there's a relatively short list of the clubs who HAVE won these things in any given 20 year rolling timeframe, so the supporters of other clubs need something to cheer on. That's also why I like the play-offs - many more meaningful games towards the end of the season than there used to be.

Jim, you may not know this, but when the play-offs first came in, the four teams involved were three from the lower league and one from the upper league. Now, THAT was interesting. For example, if the season were finished now, the four teams in the Championship play-offs would be Watford, Brighton and Palace (from the Championship) and Aston Villa (from the Premier League).

But having suffered relegation twice in ten years, and promotion only once, I can't pretend that it doesn't hurt when it's your club.

Oh, don't get me wrong. Promotion and relegation is probably the single most important thing about Association Football. It gives hope to supporters of once proud clubs like Stockport County and Luton Town - David Arnold's home club! - that they might one day be back amongst the big boys (well, in the Championship, at any rate), and it serves as a warning to other clubs to run themselves with fiscal correctness lest they end up like Leeds.

Tell that to the owners of Blackburn, TG. Seems when them chicken farmers bought the club a few years back, they weren't aware you could get relegated from the Premier League!!

Diouf apparently scored his penalty and then grabbed his own balls in front of the opposition fans!!

Gareth Bale - it has always amazed me that a bloke who looks Planet of the Apes-level simian,(as per your lookalike pics) accentuates the look with pointy sideburns and a silly haircut.

6 nil eh, Thomas? Some great goals, without your best player. Hate Alan Pardew, too. Such a plastic fake. All that tough-guy chewing when on camera, like he's really mean!! ha ha. And all that pretending to celebrate with the fans - so false. After their gutless display against rivals Sunderland he made some comment like "They wont play like that again, Im going to teach them about commitment," etc etc. Three weeks later comes this drubbing!!! Its a shame there arent a few more matches - I think Newcastle could be in trouble if there were. Hope owner Ashley gets rid of him anyway.

Jim, you may not know this, but when the play-offs first came in, the four teams involved were three from the lower league and one from the upper league. Now, THAT was interesting. For example, if the season were finished now, the four teams in the Championship play-offs would be Watford, Brighton and Palace (from the Championship) and Aston Villa (from the Premier League).

But having suffered relegation twice in ten years, and promotion only once, I can't pretend that it doesn't hurt when it's your club.

TG

As you may have guessed, I am fairly knew in following football, at least outside of the World Cup. I love the idea of the team closest to relegation being pulled into the playoff race, which of course since your post, would now be Newcastle fighting against those Championship teams! They sure got pasted.

I would love for Leeds to return to the Premier League, as well as Blackburn, who I sort of have a soft spot for!

As you may have guessed, I am fairly knew in following football, at least outside of the World Cup. I love the idea of the team closest to relegation being pulled into the playoff race, which of course since your post, would now be Newcastle fighting against those Championship teams! They sure got pasted.

Scottish leagues have previously done a similar thing where one of the teams from the lower league has to beat one in danger of the drop from the league above. Although it sounds an exciting concept, the one element of this that Ive never liked is you could have a team that barely treis and plays shit all season, and then turn it on for the one play-off game and then stay in the league when you dont deserve it.

Jim: As for players of low character, John Terry and Frank Lampard are scum on legs as far as I'm concerned. It doesn't make me feel any less about Chelsea, though. lol I'm sure one could go through the rosters of every team and find delightful people on every team, but since they tend to be crap, they don't get the attention that Utd. does.

Jim/Thomas/Kev/TG etc, you know we previously talked about Chelsea and the rather poisonous senior player power triangle in the dressing room; Terry, Lampard; Cole, etc - well, clearly the tactics of easing out the troublemakers continues. Sky sports have announced thismorning that owner Abramovitch wants Terry (notably now mostly a sub) stripped of the captaincy and David Luiz made captain. If true, this is a sure sign him and Rafa are marginalising and outing the dressing room attitude - it doesnt matter who you are, you cannot have a dressing room that decides who it is going to play for and who its not. We already saw how devisive and power-mad Terry was with his attempted coup at the press conference in the world cup, so you can imagine how bad he is in the Chelsea dressing room.

Be interesting to see what happens with the other two. Sometimes when you have a bullyboy gang you smack the leader (Terry) right on the nose and watch the others melt away - I wouldnt be surprised if they retain the other two because without their leader they both toe the line.

We already saw how devisive and power-mad Terry was with his attempted coup at the press conference in the world cup, so you can imagine how bad he is in the Chelsea dressing room.

Be interesting to see what happens with the other two. Sometimes when you have a bullyboy gang you smack the leader (Terry) right on the nose and watch the others melt away - I wouldnt be surprised if they retain the other two because without their leader they both toe the line.

I'd agree with you unconditionally if it weren't for the fact that Cole and Lampard are getting long in the tooth as well, and could both get a huge payday for the last couple of years of their career in Turkey, the USA, Japan and elsewhere. Cole is only, what, 32,33? but his playing style isn't easy to maintain at that age. Lampard is older but less inclined to play box-to-box nowadays as far as I can see.

I love the idea of the team closest to relegation being pulled into the playoff race, which of course since your post, would now be Newcastle fighting against those Championship teams! They sure got pasted.

I would love for Leeds to return to the Premier League, as well as Blackburn, who I sort of have a soft spot for!

Newcastle aren't safe yet. I rather hope they go down, as I have a client with whom I'd go to both the Leeds v Newcastle and the Newcastle v Leeds games...

Jim/Thomas/Kev/TG etc, you know we previously talked about Chelsea and the rather poisonous senior player power triangle in the dressing room; Terry, Lampard; Cole, etc - well, clearly the tactics of easing out the troublemakers continues. Sky sports have announced thismorning that owner Abramovitch wants Terry (notably now mostly a sub) stripped of the captaincy and David Luiz made captain. If true, this is a sure sign him and Rafa are marginalising and outing the dressing room attitude - it doesnt matter who you are, you cannot have a dressing room that decides who it is going to play for and who its not. We already saw how devisive and power-mad Terry was with his attempted coup at the press conference in the world cup, so you can imagine how bad he is in the Chelsea dressing room.

Be interesting to see what happens with the other two. Sometimes when you have a bullyboy gang you smack the leader (Terry) right on the nose and watch the others melt away - I wouldnt be surprised if they retain the other two because without their leader they both toe the line.

Interestingly after last night's match, which I think Dortmund deserved to go through, Mourinho was up to his usual cat and mouse games. It's all pantomime with him isn't it? Anyway, before ITV in their wisdom decided to cut him off in mid-flow, he was saying he wants to go "where he is loved". I read today that Abramovich has promised him 4 new signings - Falcao, di Maria, Pepe and Moutinho. And that Fat Frank is to be offered a one year deal. I had my doubts, but it is looking more and more likely he is returning to Chelski.